Majin Tenseiki

“Which direction are they approaching from?” Sare asked Alice.

“They are approaching from the west. They seem to have come directly from Atem towards the Irudoe domain. I feel that their approach is deliberate.”

――Perhaps they’re coming to clean up after their subjugation of the Majins.

Or maybe to hunt down any survivors, Sare thought after listening to Alice’s words.

“Then we have no choice but to escape to the east.” (Sare)

“Are we going to run?” (Alice)

“If their numbers equal our own it would be one thing, but if they outnumber us we would likely be annihilated.” (Sare)

Not only that, many of our members are of the non-violence faction.

If we pushed for a fight here, it would be difficult to deal with them in the future.

Also, it was too early. Those who were against conflict had yet to find solidarity within the group, and I would like to respect their wishes and avoid fighting if we can.

More than anything, I want to be able to count on their support in the future so that they will be of a.s.sistance when I need them the most.

So running away should be the choice that I consider first and foremost in every situation.

“――I see. ――There are roughly four times our numbers, around 200 soldiers.” (Alice)

“Then, those who can fight will buy time, and if possible, mount a counterattack. The others will seek refuge by going east. Ah, but if they’ve already set up an ambush that way it’ll be troublesome.” (Sare)

“I do not sense anything in that direction, I do not think there is an ambush, still…it is a possibility.” (Alice)

No matter what they should move the non-violence faction of the group away from the front lines.

Both Alice and Sare were in agreement on that point.

Even if the situation were more easily handled by having those in the non-violence faction partic.i.p.ate, it might become habit to rely upon them the next time the group faced danger, which would just seem like hara.s.sment to people who wanted to avoid conflict.

Even though their group was still not really unified and could use their help, it was better to avoid forcing them to fight in the long run.

――How difficult….even though we’re in a tight spot we can’t push them at this point.

“In any case, what shall we do about the group that will be retreating? I won’t ignore the likelihood of an ambush, so I’d like to have some of those willing to fight lead those who are retreating.” (Sare)

It would reduce the strength of their front line, but it would definitely be ensure the safety of the retreating group.

The problem was whether one of those itching for a fight would be interested in leading the retreat or not. With their most loathed enemy standing before them, they would likely desire to march forwards.

As Sare was considering this problem, a voice interrupted his thoughts,

“Then, I will lead the retreat,” or so said a silver-haired, silver-eyed woman who seemingly popped out in front of Sare and the rest.

A woman with a silver tail, which appeared to be quite soft.

She had a beautiful, yet also handsome, face, a so-called ‘peerless beauty.’ Her appearance was so striking that you might get the impression that she would be cold-hearted.

But, contrary to that impression, her tail was a truly honest and simple-minded existence.

Despite her stoic face, it was wagging quite happily.

“I am one of the Wolf Gala, the Werewolf race. My nose is excellent. If I’m leading the retreat then there’s no way we’ll run into an ambush.”

Alice turned her gaze towards the girl’s tail, which was still waving back and forth exuberantly, as if she could actually see it and said,

“…A dog?”

“W, wolf!!”

“Ah, my apologies, how rude of me. Still, it seems to be quite a cute tail.”

“C, cu, cute…that’s…”

――Why is she getting so embarra.s.sed? It seems she does not realize the other party is messing with her, how interesting, but I will leave her alone for now at least.

Or so thought Alice, who had called her cute based on her tone of voice.

“Hmm, I believe your name was….” (Alice)

“――[Shioni]. [Shioni Simonshial].”

“Ah yes. Well Shioni-san, can I leave the leadership of the retreat to you?” (Alice)

“Yes, please leave it to me.” (Shioni)

As Shioni agreed with an enthusiastic nod, one of those in the [fighting group] stood apart and addressed the rest.

“As a Wolf Gala, she shall be sufficient if’t cometh to a fight.  ――If that is the case, we shalt stand firm on the front lines, shall we not?” Touka said as a smile spread across her face.

“Everyone’s faces seem strange, considering how close we are to battle. For your smiles to be revived in such a situation, it is a bit excessive, is it not?” (Alice)
“Oh? But art we not seeking to showeth off our official stance by directly opposing Atem Kingdom?  ――Hahaha, how could we win if’t we wast not wearing a smile? In a battle such as this, the ones who enjoy themselves the most wilt claim victory. A smile wilt beat back any tragedy. If ‘tis true, even the king of Atem wilt beest in for a surprise, and even if’t untrue, is’t not acceptable for us to hast this little bit of enjoyment?” (Touka)

“Is that what this is?” (Alice)
“Umu, ‘tis so.” (Touka)

Touka cackled to herself, before she again addressed Alice,

“Now then, Alice, what shall milady do in this situation? ――Well, you could go with the retreating group, but doest not the [duty of protection] belong to the fighting faction――?”

“I am not fast on my feet, so I would only slow them down. To sum it up concisely――I belong on the side of [those who can protect]. From now on, my defense will be the first issue we face when we encounter opposition.”

“Alice, thou art once again speaking quite rebelliously,” Touka said with a smile.

“So, what is the plan?” Gillius wondered aloud from nearby.

“――We shall face Atem’s attack, if you are all able to protect me through this battle, it will improve our [self-confidence] as a group. You may as well use this opportunity to fortify your determination, as well as enjoy yourselves. In my personal case, I believe that considering my distant future is the best way to mentally prepare myself for such situations.” (Alice)
“Fuumu, I see, I see.” (Gillius)

“For the members fighting on the front line, I may be a bother… ――In any case, those in the retreating group will find shelter somewhere, and after we have won and are safe again we shall reunite with them, if we can manage this it shall be the first piece of [proof] we will have attained together.” (Alice)
“It’s a pretty exciting bet, huh?” Sare added with a grin.

“If you are unable to protect me here, I do not see a future for this group.” (Alice)

And they will have no choice but to constantly move forward, with no end in sight.

Therefore, if they can maintain its composure and succeed here, it will bring good fortune to the group as a whole.

“Well, that’s how it is. ――Still, there are more of you here than I would have thought,” Sare said while looking over the fighting group.

“A surprising number of those who are suited for this sort of thing. On this occasion, I wonder if referring to you all as [nothing but fools] would be acceptable so long as I used a sarcastic tone?” (Alice)

“I do not believe you are incorrect, but saying it aloud is a bit too straight-forward.” (Gillius)

Then ten-odd members who were staying behind all wore gruesome smiles as they stepped forward to prepare.

While they were bustling about, the retreating group seemed to have gotten everything ready. Shioni gave a quick glance towards Alice before saying,

“We’re ready to head out, Alice.”

Alice turned her head and then her body towards the voice, and gave Shioni a deep, respectful bow before answering:

“I entrust the rest to you, Shioni-san.”

“Leave it to me!” Shioni replied enthusiastically with a nod.

“Let’s head out!” She shouted towards her group.

A few minutes after the retreating group had run off, Sare turned his gaze west, and could make out the coiling cloud of grit that had billowed up from the army’s marching.

The enemy had appeared.

The pursuing forces from Atem.

“――By the way, how are we going to regroup after we chase these guys off?” (Sare)

“I will take to the skies with this group and we will search for them from above. I can handle this number of riders, so fret not.” (Gillius)

“Roger, roger. Now then――let’s finish this job first, shall we?” (Sare)

At Sare’s words, the frontline group nodded in unison.

And then, two great forces had their first encounter.

A rumbling sound slowly approached Sare and the others.

[They] continued forwards until they were a few dozen meters before them. Their approach gave Sare and the others feelings of unease, but even so, at the same time, it roused their determination.

As if they were standing firm before a group of fearsome beasts.

They probably expect us to run about in a panic, like ants after their line has been disturbed.

The cloud of grit and sand was blown by the wind, and tickled Sare’s nose.

Nevertheless, there was no way they would be broken here.

They had an [official stance] that would support them.

Their determination was not like a heavy burden, but rather a voice of inspiration which echoed in their hearts.

――Protect Alice.

With these words in their hearts――

They raised their gazes and stared [them] down.

Everyone in their group was wearing armor that shone brilliantly, and they glowered at Sare and the others from the crevice of their dull-colored full-plate helmets.

The whole of the army gave off an air of hostility.

Besides their armor, they all possessed identical, extravagant swords. These swords were decorated with an elaborate design, above which the word [Atem] was elegantly embossed.

It was most likely the crest of Atem Kingdom.

The [soldiers] were lined up systematically in a rectangular shape. From the middle of this defensive formation a man marched forth.

He was completely different from the other soldiers. He was wearing ornamental light armor, his short, reddish hair blew about in the breeze, and the corner of his mouth was turned up.

As he approached, he turned his willful, reddish brown eyes towards their front line, which seemed to bore into Sare, who stood at the vanguard.

“――Eh? What’s up will all these other races gathering here? I mean, isn’t that a Majin over there? Whoa, there’s a whole bunch of different ones mixed in, yeah? What the h.e.l.l, aren’t we in Irudoe? ….Yikes, I’m so confused. Can anyone explain what’s going on―?”

The red-haired man turned his gaze towards the ranks of soldiers standing behind him, and once again, from within their ranks came another person who seemed out of place.

“I don’t really get it either, hmmm――let’s just kill ‘em?”

She spoke in a light-hearted tone.

A woman.

She was also dressed in ornamental light armor. She was older.

Her hair was short and purplish black, and she had sharp blue eyes.

“To be honest I don’t really care, do whatever you want. But don’t forget, if you do something that goes against orders you’ll be scolded by the s.h.i.tty Gla.s.ses1. That would be a pain in the a.s.s. Right?――”

“That’s why, after I saw this small group of other races I thought,  [Weird, can’t we just go home without doing anything―?], but if we went home without acting we’d get even more scolding from s.h.i.tty Gla.s.ses.”

“Oh, that makes sense. Then, hurry up and dispatch them――”

After the woman spoke the red-haired man once again turned his gaze towards their group and slowly evaluated them one by one.

As he turned his eyes on them they could feel that he was sizing them up, and there was a vicious bite to his gaze. Sare and the others began to prepare themselves mentally, but――

“――Eh? …..Ah?! …….Hey, hey, hey, hey! Wait a sec! [Shayna], over there, isn’t that Her Royal Highness?”

“――What? What are you talking about, you simpleton? There’s no way Her Royal Highness is here. Have your muscles finally reached all the way up to your eyes? ….Ah, how sad. Yes, it’s truly a tragedy.” (Shayna)

“Shut up a minute and look!”

“[Ekkehardt], you’re so noisy….very well, I’ll take a look. ――So, which one is it?” (Shayna)

“――Over there,” Ekkehardt, the red-haired man, said while pointing.

Who?

Sare and the others followed the direction of Ekkehardt’s finger, as did Shayna, who was still standing amongst the ranks of Atem’s soldiers.

The person Ekkehardt was pointing at was――

The one at the pit of their group, who stood as a figurehead to support them ――the girl named [Alice Art].

The surprised shout when the truth was realized was loud enough to shake the trees of Irudoe.

“――EH?!”

Shayna was the one who shouted.

She rubbed her eyes against her sleeves and strained her eyes as she focused on Alice.

“Ara? Are my eyes also becoming muscle….? How strange, even though I thought I wasn’t a muscle-creature.” (Shayna)

“Face reality. I also can’t believe it, but that’s how it is,” Ekkehardt urged.

“So…it is. So it is. There’s no other explanation. But, if she’s the real thing, aren’t we being super rude? Before we give that s.h.i.tty Gla.s.ses another reason to scold us――” (Shayna)

“Yes, before we give another reason――” (Ekkehardt)

In the next moment the two had dropped to one knee――and kneeled before them.

Their posture influence the two-hundred soldiers who stood behind them, and the soldiers also dropped into a kneeling position.

“The Emperor has been concerned. You are her Royal Highness, [Princess Alice Art Atem], are you not?”

Ekkehardt and Shayna said, while they kept their heads down.

Sare and the others couldn’t understand what was going on. Nor what they were saying.

These people were speaking about something they didn’t understand, their discussion felt alien to their ears.

――I don’t understand what’s going on.

Sare and the others were in shock.

Before them the whole of Atem’s army were kneeling with their heads down.

The target of their hostilities had suddenly become like that.

――What are they talking about?

Sare considered their words over and over in his head.

――[Alice Art Atem]

Her name is Alice Art.

She told me her name herself.

She had introduced herself to the others the same way.

First name Alice, last name Art.

But they had just heard another version: Alice Art [Atem].

――That’s impossible.

If that’s her name, it’s as if she’s….

Part of [Atem’s royal family].

Sare shook his head and tried to dislodge that idea from his thoughts.

――No, there’s no way.

He denied it.

This girl who was leading a group of Other races――there was no way she could be a member of the royal family, a royal family that hoped to enact the supreme rule of the Pure race over all others.

The two positions were too polarized for her to belong to both.

――They’re just misunderstanding. This is just a case of mistaken ident.i.ty.

Their eyes must be just for show.

If that’s the case, while their heads are lowered…

Have the frontlines――

Despite these thoughts, Sare didn’t move.

Perhaps, unconsciously, he was waiting for Alice to say something.

The others were likely waiting for her to speak as well.

The battlefield was stuck in limbo.

Time seemed to come to a halt, the whole situation felt unnatural, like they had been trapped in a frozen moment in time.

And then――

“I see. Yes, there was a time when I was called by that name.”

Sare felt as if he could hear something breaking inside his head.